Pennhills Club, Bradford, PA

[JohnV]

Last week, I took a trip up to The Pennhills Club in Bradford, PA.  The course was originally routed by Walter Travis who built the first 9 holes (now 2-10) in 1922.  In 1937, a clubhouse was built up the hill by Clifford C. Wendehack, who designed Winged Foot and Bethpage's clubhouse among others and holes 1 & 18 were built buy an unknown architect.  In the 1958, Dick Wilson did the final 7 holes (11-17) supposedly using the original routing of Travis.

The nine holes built by Travis are basically built on pretty flat terrain, but some of the holes have wonderful movement on the fairways and all the greens are very interesting.  Below are a couple of pictures of the 7th green.  Seven is a 390 yard par 4 that has a sharp dogleg around some trees.  The second shot is over a small creek to a smallish green that has about as much interesting movement as I've seen in any green of its size.  The green has a flatish area in front and the back half has a lowered center section with a raised horseshoe around it.

Unfortunately the morning I took my camera out we were trying to do the course rating between thunderstorms so I didn't get any more pictures.

The holes built by Wilson have more severely sloped greens, but don't have the interesting humps and bumps in them.

Club Website


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[Steve_ Shaffer]

John

Isn't Bradford the "ice-box" of PA?

The clubhouse is magnificent:

www.pennhillsclub.com

Steve

[JohnV]

I believe it is known as the Icebox of PA, which probably explains why Zippo lighter started there.  We didn't get to the Zippo museum while we were there, but maybe next trip.

[Doug Wright]

JVB,

I grew up in Olean NY about 20 miles N of Bradford, and I played Pennhills several times in junior tournaments (it was the scene of one of my best tournaments ever--a shame to peak at 15…   ). The course was/is definitely schizoid, with the wonderfully subtle Travis holes and great greens/greensites on the front nine and the longer, largely boring newer back nine (Wilson). Indeed a gorgeous stone clubhouse. The course was always a treat to play--thanks for the trip down memory lane!

[Ian Andrew]

I went there to look at Travis's work, there are some wonderful examples of his mounding on a couple of holes. Wilson was only there by name, but they do have Travis's drawings for all 18 holes. I know because I found them in an old metal locker rolled inside of a series of drawings when I visited there - imagine 18 linen working drawings in a locker with assorted garbage piled up around it!

The pictures did not do the 7th green justice. The back two quadrents are seperated by a sublime centre ridge. The front pins are on a lower tier and just as hard to find, but the joy of the green is the tiny centre bowl known as the throne. If you hit the green in the back when the pin is forward, you are dead. One of his most interesting greens on a course that has only a few nice moments.

All this on a flat featureless piece of land. Shows you that a green can make a hole all by itself.

[JohnV]

Ian, I agree that the pictures don't do the green justice.  I wish they had come out better, but the weather was really lousy that day.  There are a couple of other really good greens. 3 & 4 also had great contours and all the rest of the Travis greens were at least very interesting.

[Ian Andrew]

John,

On a good or bad day, I've never found a way to really capture green contours.

What did you think about the distance between greens and bunkers? Many are a long way away from the surface but have grades leading right to them. If the turf was short the ball could feed off the green and eventually down into the bunkers. If this was the case (my speculation) this was something very unique that I haven't seen at another Travis course.

Ian

[JohnV]

Ian, you are correct.  I specifically remember mentioning it to the guys I was with at the 3rd hole where the slope leads directly into a bunker right of the green.

[John Foley]

I played Pennhills a few years back and they had some tough drainage issues.

Did not know the architectural history of the place, but found it much better than most of the area clubs.

Ian - Did the club put the Travis drawings on display?

[Ian Andrew]

Caught me travelling..........but I finally figured out this wireless thing.

When I went there last they were in serious financial difficulties, so they had no money. I had recommended to the club that they scan them and then frame them.

I have no idea what they did with them.